Two Area Golfers Qualify For PGA Tour

By: Various Reports | WSPA-TV
Published: December 06, 2011

Spartanburg, SC --

SPARTANBURG, S.C. - William McGirt, a 2001 graduate of Wofford College and former Clemson and Boiling Springs High stand-out Tommy Biershenk, Jr. each qualified for the PGA Tour with the performances in the qualifying tournament that warpped up Monday afternoon in San Diego.

Biershenk finished in a tie for fifth in the qualifying tournament (known as Q School) and finsihed 14 under par, three off the pace of the tournament winner Brendon Todd. It's the first time Biershenk has qualified for the tour.

McGuirt earned his PGA Tour card for the second straight season by finishing tied for 13th overall in the six-round event. He is the first Wofford graduate on the PGA Tour.

McGirt was three under with a 69 in the final round, giving him a six-round total of 11-under par (65-73-70-73-71-69-421). He birdied the 18th hole after a bogey on 17 in the final round to secure his position. Brandon Todd finished first at 17-under par. The top 25 finishers received PGA Tour cards.

In his first season on the PGA Tour in 2011, McGirt played in 32 events and made the cut in 19. He earned $532,933 on the season and was 82nd in the FedEx Cup standings. McGirt had a strong showing at The Barclays, when he finished 24th and qualified for the Deutsche Bank Championship. His top finish of the year was 16th at the Justin Timberlake Shriners Hospitals for Children Open.

At Wofford, he had a total of three career wins, including the 2001 SoCon Championship, along with nine top ten finishes. He was the medalist at the 2001 Southern Conference Championship as he fired a 5-under par 205 and won it with a par on the first hole of a sudden-death playoff. McGirt was named the 1998 Southern Conference Freshman of the Year and garnered All-Southern Conference honors in 2000. He won the 2000 Cleveland Golf/ASU Invitational with a 9-under par 207 with three-straight rounds of 69 and finished second at the 2000 Southern Conference Championship, a stroke behind the winner. He was inducted into the Wofford College Athletic Hall of Fame in 2010.